The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1887-12-29
lcoraa-sa r,u 2assl

hearth, and the accompanying festivities
at home.
The services commenced sh rtly after
entered, but it was only SON hfte % or
twenty minutes afterwerd whel the min
ister suspended Al d smiss The con
gregatiOL-sO intense and alu 81! o. aar-
a6le vas the hear. IL took about hve
minutes to empty the chu-e, ana .t.er
repairing to my room, at tn hCtei near
by, gazed out of the wiudoW eld not q
solitary person was TO bee seen o. the
streets Of this little village, WIN q ponu.a
ZION Of 2,5U0 people. l done k.cs COW
1 got through the day. but
puring two years trsve, i2 ,haJ
peculiar country. l never t1p-r le"d
anu,hvr scUrcher IKE II.
was cnnsoled from time 20 time by
the residents assuring me thst W. would
soon have winter, and l iOoked iDrHsld 10
the coming of that period vi d lc smlti
degree OF impatleuce; and Sheu tle sun
mer was over l found mys>E IN Cape
Town, ana l must say their VI .er weather
reminded me more of our e..i.e shan
anything else aud was MOI -..I1HriCgs
than any | have ever bad tie pleasure If
experiencing. Yet the natl, g1G did
Egglish sideuts appeared to s.a-r WITH
the cod, while wished for 4 pGrpstu,.y
Of such weather.
To give toe reader some lea OF the
difference III feeling beswe-. tas uid
residents and the new conner, viii men
ton little Circumstance IN happened
in Cape Town. Que evening a f. ia aud
myself were aiding the digestion oi a very
good suPper 10y playing billiards n IA
Hotel Roy al, and with our cOat- and vests
of, sbirt sleeves rolled NJ. and peGtrdly
hopping our perspiring brows, We were
anxiuusIy waiting the termination OF the
2 ime, when the door opened ana ng1re
advanced. say a figure, because could
see at first nothing but two eyes glarius
out from beneath an immense ulster hat
reached from head 70 foot. i remember
bursting Out laughing, and Is he 1gurs
came nearer, 50 that | could bettec
observe, | discovered that there vas a
man within the ulster. l asked, ia the
name of goodness, why he wore such
thing at this season of the year, accom-
panying my question with more mopplng
OF my face. With a SILVER, the m,u re-.
piled, "Why, I'm cold" This, of course,
provoked more laughter from u, when
we were told by Mr.. Ulster taas ne
could lot blame Us for lsug hing, as he
had felt the same as ourselves, five years
before, when first coming to the Cape, aud
ventured to assert thai, if We stage Il that
country the same length of time, we would
fnd an overcoat Indispensable, so thin
does the blood become after several years
residence in that tropical climate.
After spending six weeks IN Cape Town,
| took steamer for Port Eliz beth, 500
miles from the first named place, and,
while making the Port headquarters dur
ing my little hunting journeys, was an
eyewitness to the wreckage of seventeen
vessels in one day, during a severe storm.
Port Elizabeth has no hsrbor; they have
spent millions of dollars in the vain effort
to make one, but owing to the perpetual
mOvIngs of the sandy bottom, have been
compelled to give the project mp as a bad
job. So all vessels anchor in the bay;
Algoa bay, As it is named, and noted for
its many wrecks.
Fran Port Elizabeth l booked for the
diamond fields" and took passage in one
of "CObbs" coaches, which are fac SMILES
of the New York hotel coaches, and carry
eighteen passengers, nine inside, and nine
out We went by way of Grshsm's town,
crossed the Orange river, and reached
"DeBeer's New Rush,"s distance of 500
miles from Port Elizabeth, in exactly
seven days, which was considered good
travelling, as some of the mountains and
rivers on the way were deemed very dan
gerous; but We had good driver and
relays of six horses, about every thirty
miles, and travelled from sunrise to dark.
WAS very particular to engage an outside
seat on the coach, which l regretted after
wards, for on arriving at our destination
my face was so burned by the sun as 10
cau-e me considerable pain. and you may
be sure, on my Return, took good care TO
engage an inside seat. During this jour
ney saw for the first time what l had so
often read of, viz: the sun darkened by
millions of locnsts, and miles and miles of
country laid bare of grass by these unre-
hitting, devastating insects.
After spending SIX months on the dia-
mond fields, among Dutchmen, Z1lus,
Hottentots and Kaffirs, l started on my
ten-thousand mile journey home, which
reached safely in forty six hours. l never
regretted the trip, but allow me to remark
right here, give me Austin, a thousand
times over, even with sleet and rain, like
We had day or so ago, in preference to
! a l3O-degrees n-the-shade-climate on
Christmas day in South Africa.
THE RAIL.